From Old English 'aelf' — originally powerful, luminous beings of Germanic myth, not tiny whimsical creatures. See: Alfred.
A supernatural creature of folk tales, typically represented as a small, delicate, elusive figure in human form with pointed ears and magical powers.
From Old English 'ælf' (elf, a supernatural being), from Proto-Germanic *albiz, possibly from PIE *albho- (white, bright). In early Germanic belief, elves were powerful, luminous beings associated with beauty, fertility, and danger — not the diminutive creatures of later folklore. Norse mythology distinguished 'ljósálfar' (light
The name 'Alfred' means 'elf-counsel' — from Old English 'ælf' (elf) + 'rǣd' (counsel). Anglo-Saxon parents named children after elves as a mark of beauty and supernatural favor: Ælfwine (elf-friend), Ælfric (elf-power), Ælfgifu (elf-gift). The word 'nightmare' may also be elf-related — German 'Alb' (elf) and 'Albtraum' (elf-dream) preserve the old belief that elves sat on sleepers